What does a golden calf (Ex 32:7-14) have to do with our spirituality today? It has nothing to do with it if we take the account literally. It has everything to do with it if we dig deeper and examine the reality underlying the symbol of the golden calf.

Merton defines our Golden Calf—our idolatry:

The great sin, the source of all other sin, is idolatry and never has it been greater, more prevalent than now. Yet it is almost completely unrecognized precisely because it is so overwhelming and so total. It takes in everything. There is nothing else left. Fetishism of power, machine, possessions, medicines, sports, clothes, etc. all kept going by greed for money and power. The Bomb is only one accidental aspect of the cult. Indeed, the Bomb is not the worst. We should be thankful for it as a sign, a revelation of what all the rest of our civilization points to: the self-immolation of man to his own greed and his own despair. Behind it all are the principalities and powers whom man serves in his idolatry. Christians are as deeply involved in this as everyone else. (The Intimate Merton) Continue reading →